- Date
- April 12, 1989, 09:44 local (13:44 UTC)
- Place
- Airville, PA
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N157PBell 206B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 30, 1991
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Safety recommendations
- Yes
- FAA report
- 19890412007809A
- Case key
- 36301
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot was unable to see and avoid the unmarked power lines stretched across the river. A contributing factor was the lack of visual clues.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The helicopter was being operated by the pa state police over the susquehanna river searching for a possible victim reported to have jumped into the river. It was travelling in a southwesterly direction when it hit unmarked power lines stretched east and west across, and about 160 ft above, the river. The wreckage was located in about 10 feet of water. The power lines were supported by 60-foot wooden poles set back into the wood line, and were not shown on any of the area charts.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N157P
- Reported as
- Bell 206B
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 2771
- Airframe hours
- 4,271
- Engine
- Allison 250-L20B, 420 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Public aircraft · Part 91
- Operator
- Commonwealth Of Pa., doing business as Pa State Police
- Registered owner
- Commenwealth Of Pennsylvania
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · April 11, 1989 · 2 hours before
- Departed
- N/A · Lancaster, PA
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 39
- Certificates
- Commercial, Military
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Right
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 3,283 total · 719 in this make and model · 3,283 as pilot in command · 84 in the last 90 days · 48 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 150° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 12 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 8,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 46 °F, dew point 37 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- LNS, 10 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.